Iban

The Ibans are also known as Sea Dayaks and the title Dayak was given by the British and the Dutch to various ethnic groups in Borneo island.

Ibans were renowned for practicing headhunting and territorial migration, and had a fearsome reputation as a strong and successfully warring tribe. Since the arrival for Europeans and the subsequent colonization of the area, headhunting gradually faded out of practice, although many other tribal customs and practices as well as the Iban language continue to thrive.

The Iban population is concentrated in the state of Sarawak in Malaysia, Brunei, and the Indonesian province of West Kalimantan. 

The Iban have a special and unique residence namely the longhouse where the villagers live under one roof. Back then, most the Iban longhouses were situated by the river as it was their main mode of transportation. In addition, there are variations of longhouse designs between different ethnic groups 

However, the Iban village would normally have only one longhouse, which is in straight-line with a rectangular shape, built using heavy hardwood posts and beam structures. The floors and walls are constructed using bamboos, sometimes with wood barks and palm thatch roofs. It is almost conceptually similar to that of terrace row houses, with each compartment or home separated by walls and sharing a common street. Each family has its own personal compartment known as "bilek", which is equipped with sleeping and cooking areas. The cooking area is the area where the ‘ladies of the house’ clean and cook, as well as socialize with other women. Simply said, it is an area only for the females in the house.  

The Iban language (Jaku Iban) is spoken by the Iban, one of the Dayak ethnic groups, who live in Brunei, the Indonesian province of West Kalimantan and in the Malaysian state of Sarawak. 

Iban comes from the Ibanic language group spoken in Sarawak, West Kalimantan and Brunei within Borneo island. Thus, Iban is closely related to Malay, especially the Sarawakian dialect. Other isolects in the Ibanic group of languages are Sebuyau, Mualang, Kantu, and Seberuang.